BORUSSIA DORTMUND 7 CELTIC 1
BRENDAN RODGERS urged his Celtic players to take their game to a new level against Borussia Dortmund in Champions League matchday two this evening.
And they complied with their manager’s wishes. Unfortunately, though, the level they hit wasn’t the one envisaged by the Parkhead gaffer.
The Hoops plummeted to a depth we have not witnessed in years as they disintegrated in the Westfalenstadion with the Bundesliga side simply taking them apart in an embarrassing one-sided contest.
Karim Adeyemi helped himself to a hat-trick with Emre Can and Serhou Guirassy chipping in with a penalty-kick each in a whirlwind first-half that blew the visitors away.
PUZZLED…Brendan Rodgers looks bewildered as his side take a pummelling in Dortmund.
The only brief moment of joy for the 3,500 travelling fans was Daizen Maeda’s ninth-minute equaliser, but the cheers were stifled within two minutes as the hosts restored their lead in quickfire fashion.
Guirassy and Felix Nmecha added to the misery with second-half strikes to complete a painful, excruciating encounter for Rodgers’ shell-shocked squad.
If anyone ever wondered about Cameron Carter-Vickers’ worth to this team they were given a stark reminder in this humiliating display.
Liam Scales and Auston Trusty teamed up again for the second time in the absence of the injured USA central defender.
They found last season’s Champions League runners-up a vastly proposition to St Johnstone.
Alistair Johnston tried manfully while Greg Taylor struggled with the pace and positional play of the rivals and the midfield three of Arne Engels, Callum McGregor and Paulo Bernardo were engulfed and swept aside as they made little impression on proceedings.
CONSOLATION STRIKE…Daizen Maeda claims Celtic’s solitary goal.
Kyogo Furuhashi was starved of any sort of service, Nicolas Kuhn rarely threatened on the right and Maeda, as ever, put in a lung-bursting shift on the opposite flank.
It wasn’t easy on the eye to watch Celtic completely overrun, but that was the nightmarish scenario that was played out in Dortmund with Europe looking on.
Can started the rot with a seventh-minute spot-kick after the overworked Kasper Schmeichel had brought down Jamie Gyttens who had been allowed to race through the heart of the rearguard after latching onto a ricochet off McGregor.
The Dane was booked for his trouble and was left helpless as the ball was despatched into his top right-hand corner as he took off for his left.
The procession continued when Adeyemi notched a second with a blistering shot that took a nick off Trusty on its way into the net. Just before the half-hour mark, the striker thumped in No.3 after the failure to deal with a right-wing corner-kick.
Five minutes before the interval, Borussia were gifted a second spot-kick after fussy Spanish referee Jose Sanchez adjudged Engels had fouled Adeyemi. It looked harsh, but that didn’t bother Guirassy who fired low past Schmeichel who got a touch, but couldn’t prevent it hitting the net.
Two minutes later, Adeyemi pounced on slackness from Maeda at the edge of the box an sizzled a drive in at Schmeichel’s left-hand post.
A MAN ALONE…Kasper Schmeichel looks isolated as his defence goes AWOL.
At the start of the second-half, Alex Valle and Reo Hatate took over from Taylor and Bernardo who had suffered in the general melee.
Adam Idah and Yang Hyun-jun joined the action in the 63rd minute as they replaced Kyogo and Kuhn and three minutes later the home fans were cheering again after Guirassy turned Scales inside out before whipping No.6 low past the unprotected Schmeichel.
Substitute Nmecha capitalised on some catastrophic defending to lash the seventh into the inviting net in the 79th minute.
Feeble. Timid. Tame. Choose your own word for a showing from Celtic that highlighted they still have a long way to go.
It could have been worse. Schmeichel produced three first-class saves after the break to prevent the Hoops from crashing the record books.
Looking on the positive side, it must be hoped Rodgers and his players will heed tonight’s warning signals and learn from their mistakes.
TEAM: Schmeichel; Johnston (sub: Ralston 85), Trusty, Scales, Taylor (sub: Valle 46); Engels, McGregor, Bernardo (sub: Hatate 46) Kuhn (sub: Yang 63), Kyogo (sub: Idah 63), Maeda.
